Orange Supergiant Star Shines Through Hazy Nebula in Amazing Photo

Massive star Xi Cygni, also known as 62 Cygni or ξ Cyg, glows orange toward the center of the photo with the gas and dust of the North American Nebula in the background. Jeff Johnson captured this image on Dec. 23, 2013 from his backyard in Las Cruces, N.M.

Orange supergiant star, Xi Cygni, beams through the red haze of the North American Nebula's "west coast," in this stunning night sky photo recently sent in to Space.com.

Amateur astronomer Jeff Johnson captured this image on Dec. 23 from his backyard in Las Cruces, N.M. The star Xi Cygni, also known as 62 Cygni or ξ Cyg, glows orange toward the center of the photo with the gas and dust of the North American Nebula in the background.

The North America Nebula is an emission nebula 100 light-years in diameter located in the constellation Cygnus — roughly 1,800 light-years away. A light-year is the distance light travels in one year, or about 6 trillion miles (10 trillion kilometers). The nebula, also known as NGC 7000, takes its name from a supposed resemblance to the continent. [Strange Nebula Shapes: What Do You See? (Photos)]